B-
To say the Dinos men’s hockey team fulfilled all their goals throughout the course of this season would be a stretch of the truth rivaled only by CNN’s journalistic views on the war. However, to say that none of their goals were accomplished would be a flat-out lie.
The Dinos’ level of play at the beginning of this season really had some people questioning if this could be the year in which they could defeat the University of Alberta Golden Bears and challenge for a national championship. Then, seemingly overnight, the great start took a dramatic turn for the worse when netminder Aaron Baker was lost to injury, and the whole outlook of the season took a negative turn.
The team lost much of the confidence they held earlier in the season, regardless of the solid play of Tyler Nillson, who filled in as the starting goaltender until Baker returned after Christmas. The tailspin, however, continued for the remainder of the season and the team couldn’t pull out the close victories against stronger opponents.
Although Calgary regained some of the lost form before entering the playoffs, they still faced a very difficult and draining opening round against the Lethbridge Pronghorns. Even though they won, that series left them at the mercy of the well-rested and very powerful U of A squad in round two.
After all that, the team still earned a well-deserved B-. The Dinos were a lot more consistent in their play compared to last season, and each game was exciting to watch. There were some real positives in the play of the team’s veteran players like Ken McKay and Sean Robertson who did their best to lead an often underpowered offence.
The emergence of some big blueliners like Travis George helped build a solid foundation for the future. Although on paper the team may not have reached its overall goal, the sum of this season’s parts can be looked upon as greater than the whole. A solid B-.